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20 September 2005

Bush's latest priority

Bush's top cop, Alberto Gonzalez is redirecting resources of the FBI to a new top priority. The war on Porn. And, this is not illegal porn but porn bought by consenting adults.

All 56 field offices have been directed to re-allocate manpower for the new "anti-obsenity squad."

The DC field office is already up in arms about such a ridiculous use of resource in an agency that is already stretched thin. This office usually concentrates on national security, terrorism, high-tech crimes, corruption, etc. Now one of their top priorities will be to gather evidence against "manufacturers and purveyors" of porn.

"I guess this means we've won the war on terror," said one exasperated FBI agent, speaking on the condition of anonymity because poking fun at headquarters is not regarded as career-enhancing. "We must not need any more resources for espionage."

Among friends and trusted colleagues, an experienced national security analyst said, "it's a running joke for us."

Where are they going to focus initially? They are looking at the purveyors. Explicit sexual entertainment is a profit center for companies including General Motors Corp. and Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. (the two major owners of DirecTV), Time Warner Inc. and the Sheraton, Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt hotel chains. My guess is that these high profile big corporations are not going to be pleased.

Gonzales rational is that adult pornography is a threat to families and children. Christian conservatives, long skeptical of Gonzales, greeted the pornography initiative with what the Family Research Council called "a growing sense of confidence in our new attorney general."

At the FBI's field office, spokeswoman Debra Weierman expressed disappointment that some of her colleagues find grist for humor in the new campaign. "The adult obscenity squad . . . stems from an attorney general mandate, funded by Congress," she said. "The personnel assigned to this initiative take the responsibility of this assignment very seriously and are dedicated to the success of this program."

In a time where our priorities in rebuilding this country seem to be further falling away, Bush and his team once again give us reason for dispair. Porn is the least of the problems facing this country.